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Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney was active in the private equity world, which critics may latch onto if he is chosen for the vice presidential slot.
AP Photo

Private equity lobbyists have begun to prepare their clients to face increased attention in the event of a McMitt ticket.

First, they note, Romney's Bain story is not all bad.

During Romney's time at the helm, Bain shifted from making venture capital-type investments to buyouts.

While some of Bain's investments in the Romney era — including investments in Domino's and Staples — created tens of thousands of new jobs, others resulted in layoffs.

During his primary run, Romney painted his Bain-era self as a venture capitalist investing in creative startup companies.

"I was responsible for a firm that invested other peoples' money," he said in South Carolina last winter. "So I'd listen to new ideas and try to pick the ones I thought were the most innovative."

Industry lobbyists, though, fear Romney's nomination would highlight tax and wealth inequality issues that first started to attract attention last summer, soon after the $4.75 billion initial public offering of Blackstone that made billions for its investors.

Congress quickly proposed measures targeting the special tax treatment of private equity funds and their managers. One particularly controversial proposal would more than double taxes on a portion of investment managers' income known as carried interest.

That proposal passed the House but eventually died in the Senate under opposition from Republicans and the business community, who argued it would impact a huge number of businesses that use a similar payment structure.

The debate has died down over the past few months, as energy prices and the housing crisis became more pressing concerns. The announcement this week that KKR would go public drew almost no comment from the political world.

But if Romney gets the nomination, private equity would attract renewed attention and a national audience would soon receive a tutorial on carried interest and billion dollar windfalls.

The attacks would probably mirror those made by Sen. Edward M. Kenney (D-Mass.) when Romney made a bid for his seat in 1994.

In 1992, Bain bought a controlling interest in Ampad, a Marion, Ind.-based paper products company, and then proceeded to lay off 200 workers and cut the remaining employees' salaries and benefits.

The employees responded with a strike, during which some trailed Romney across the state and protested at his campaign events.

Kennedy labeled his opponent a "robber baron" and flooded the airways with ads featuring people who were laid off from businesses Romney had purchased saying things like, "You're not creating jobs, you're taking them away from us to put money in your pocket."

Voters would likely see similarly devastating ads this fall if Romney joined the McCain ticket.

"It's not about him being rich, it's about how he got rich. He got rich at the expense of a lot of people," said Mellman. "And if this becomes a matter of national debate, it can't help the industry."

Wow! Politco you're really showing your liberal feathers out here today with this "fictional story". The fact is Mitt Romney's company, Bain, put the first dollar into Staples which now employs over 80,000 Americans. Mitt company "fixed" companies that were mis-managed and had poor leadership at the top. They weren't always successful at turning around a company that was "already" in trouble.

It ashame that the liberals running our corrupt wolfpack press have to resort to attacking candiates in order to help their own, like "the one" aka Obama.

It's pretty clear that our corrupt liberal press has been after Romney since he announce his intentions of seeking to be president. This "fictional attack story" is just another one of their attempts to keep McCain from picking Mitt.

Mitt would add the most to a McCain ticket. He would please the conservatives, would add Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Montanna, Michigan, and New Hampshire to the McCain win column. Mitt also has a proven record of knowing how to creat wealth, now let help all Americans creat wealth. Mitt is Mr. Economy and Mr. Fixer. He knows what makes jobs come and what makes this go.

ALL Americans should be glad that we qualified candidates like Mitt that want to run for public office. Our next president and veep should be elected based on their "past performances and accomplishments" John and Mitt have both.................."the one"....aka Obama has neither. Watch out for the political attacks from Obama's enablers, our wolfpack press and an M & M ticket. It's the strongest ticket the GOP has and the wolfpack press knows it. Which is WHY this fictional hit story is out here today........................really sad indeed.

When you see this many warnings against a VP candidate, it is usually driven by fear from the opponent. In this case, the Democrats.

The Democrats and the press have attacked Romney more than any other candidate. Why? Because he is the most qualified candidate across all parties. Democrats want to cast doubt about Romney as frequently as they can get away with it.

This story is yet another case. If this story wasn't hand delivered to Politico... it was certainly created to help the Democrats.

LogicalSolutions good points. We all still can remember how the Associated Press came out and attacked Mitt Romney during the primaries. It's "perfectly clear" that the official sponsors of the 2008 Democrat Presidential campaign, our mostly liberal MSM wolfpack press are ONCE AGAIN trying to stop Mitt. Liberals simply can't stand folks associated with "business". They probably don't know that America's "economic engine" is Big Business. No Big Business then no economy. It's a simple concept that Democrat and liberals just can't seem to warm up to.

Mitt comes from a very moderate conserveative Mid-Western Repubican family. His father was a very popular 3-term Governor of Michigan in the 1960's. The Romney's like most Republicans were at the forefront of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960's. And Mitt's father, George Romney, DID march with that great Lincoln Republican, Martin Luther King Jr. Mitt's mother was also one of the first woman to run as a US Senator. So there is a very rich history of the Romney's performing and serving this country with honor.

I strongly believe that Mitt's the second coming of Ronald Reagan and believe that we need to get him in Washington DC to help John McCain be successful in his first term as president. Mitt did great things in Massachusetts working with a state legislature there that was 85% Democrats. As McCain's veep and President of the Senate Mitt Romney can help resolve the very importants issues that this country has facing us today. We need to elect PROVEN experience on the night of November 4th........................an M & M ticket is a way to ensure that we do...................!

With very few exceptions, the nation's hospitals are overstaffed by ten percent, some even more driving up the cost of healthcare unnecessarily. If I understand the Democrats, improving patient care processes that result in lowering preventable deaths and medical errors plus identify unnecessary employees due to major efficiency gains, I can be accused of making these hospital employees poor rather than be thanked for lowering the cost of health care in my community. Then, if others in the health care community follow my lead and do the same to a degree that health care premiums in our community drop significantly because of less employees, less preventable medical errors and deaths which results in local employers having funds to expand and hire new people, I still should be labeled as a making local businesses rich and a handful of people poor who probably have been hired by the businesses that became rich. The thought that Romney got rich and others poor is like saying Babe Ruth cost the American League 60 baseballs. This nation does not have an economy crisis, we have a stupid crisis in the Democrat Party.

OBAMA'S NEVER HAD A REAL JOB.(CANT COUNT EITHER,,57 STATES?.:) KERRY MARRIED 'KETCHUP'.. ROMNEY,WELL LETS JUST SAY HE WORKS FOR HIS MONEY AND IS THE TOP ..1% THAT WE TAX.! V.P. SHOULD BE ABLE TO RUN THE COUNTRY,NOT JUST WHAT WILL GET YOU ELECTED..OBAMA HASNT FIQURED THIS OUT YET, HE NEVER MENTIONED WHAT 300 STAFF ON HIS FANTASY TRIP COST US!!! WHAT A JOKE

Romney is a joke. He's a perfect example of how most Mormons are; all show and shallow substance. They push family values while telling their kids how cheap every other religon is. There is no way under God's blue sky that Mitt will make it past his current political high spot. But, I wish that McShame would pick him.

There is a new book out on "Barry" Obama...written by Harvard, Political Science PHD (1972) and prolific writer/author, Jerome Corsi.

The book is titled "Obama Nation." Don't miss reading it. Corsi is presently making his book promotional tour on radio and TV. Very impressive man. The book is nearly 400 pages, with close to 700 footnotes (documentation).

As a Liberal Democrat, I like what Romney did to Massachussetts. He was able to seperate his religion from his politics on issues from abortion to marriage for all. He cared about the poor.... though, not much about the middle class. He cared for large business buy he did not cater to small business owners. But, there was too much controversy about Romney. He made some very bad decisions that will come back to haunt him. I don't care about his religious views, but mainline Christians will not like some of them when they are explained to the public. He would bring John McCain down. Rep. Cantor, of VA, is the perfect pick. He has no political baggage, he is young and not well known by the voters. McCain needs someone to balance the ticket. Cantor is his answer.

The last thing we need is a corporate raider who has made heartless comments about military service in the White House! The government takeover by sleazy corporate interests has gone far enough already. Romney is all about pleasing the private sector--he should stay there! If McCain chooses Mitt it shows what a spineless Yes Man McCain really is.

I suggest McCain follow his gut feeling not be intimidated by Politico or any other leftwing media.You cant pick a VP based on what they write.Obama is feeling his way thru the campaign based on polls and what media wants.Choose this position choose that this vp aint good thisone is good.all nonsense.Romney is a great speaker and very confident. Who else put up millions of their own money to win.We are not beholdened to what the media saids.Choose the man thats right for you and America not who is less liked by the leftwing media.Romny is a big boy he can take care of himself against the media.

It's ashame to see the liberal bigots out here today injecting "religous hate" into their comments. If that's the "face" of the Democrat Party then all I have to say is that's it's an "ugly" face and ALL Americans should shun those that engage in it for political gain only..........................sad.